DICKINSON, ND (KFYR) – Last week, high school was the focus as most of those teams opened their seasons. This week, college football season begins and most games are on Thursday, when Dickinson State hosts Rocky Mountain College.

The Blue Hawks and the Battlin’ Bears will play in the same conference next year and already have a long football history. This will be their 45th meeting. Fall camp went well for the Hawks, but it probably should have been considering who is back, especially on offense.

“When you have your entire offensive line and a senior quarterback and a senior running back back, that’s always a positive thing. So I think we definitely have some players back in that area, and everyone is back on that offensive line, and with Will Madler at quarterback and Braden Zuroff at tailback, we have a lot of players back. You know, the real question mark on offense is the receiver group, losing Noah Zickler and Kaden Kuntz from the main receiver group,” DSU head coach Pete Stanton said.

“Experience is always good, especially in college. We have a lot of guys who have played a lot of snaps and know what the college game is like and how physical it is, and I think that’s the strength of our team,” DSU quarterback Will Madler said.

Madler was a three-year starter for the Demons and was named the 2018 Gatorade Player of the Year for Bismarck High before beginning his college career at Aberdeen.

“They told me I was no longer eligible to play, so I have to move on, six years is too much. I have to make the most of it. I have been playing football for many years. I know that my family and I really appreciate all the stops I have made and I enjoy the game of football,” said Madler.

Madler was a first-team all-conference quarterback last year and helped wide receiver Noah Sickler become the conference’s offensive MVP.

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